Tuesday, March 26, 2013

The Timberlake Effect…

Justin Timberlake is all over the
place now. There is no denying the power
of his celebrity. Over the past few
years he has separated himself from the stigma of a Boy Band and created an
empire on his name alone. Seriously, don’t
doubt the power he has in the industry, both musically and otherwise. He has taken a seven year hiatus from music
in order to attempt to prove himself an actor, and he has obviously garnered
enough respect within the movie industry to not only be courted by high profile
directors (Fincher, Coen Brothers) but also become a regular face at awards
shows and red carpets. The people (all
people) love him.

With the release of his latest album,
‘The 20/20 Experience’, plus the growing popularity he achieves from working
with top notch actors and single handedly saving this season of SNL, Timberlake
is being rumored to be in the running to host this year’s Oscar ceremony.

What do we have to say about
this?

Here’s my thing; Timberlake has
charisma. There is no denying that. He’s tried really hard over the past few
years to refine that charisma so that he exudes ‘Move Star’ as opposed to ‘Pop
Star’, because it’s obvious that he prefers the respect associated with the
former. I personally find that charisma
equal parts charming and distracting (I can’t get into his acting because he can’t
seem to distance himself from himself) but I am curious as to how this will
play out on a platform like Oscar. He is
remarkable on SNL each time he hosts, and this has a lot to do with the ease
before the camera (and improvisation) but Oscar is so different. I mean, if Oscar played out like an SNL skit
then…but no.

I’m intrigued by this
possibility, but I kind of have a feeling it won’t happen (which is probably
for the best).

So that has me wondering; what do
you think of Timberlake’s career? Do you
feel he belongs in music or movies, or he is ‘multi-talented’? I personally think he needs to stick to music. ‘The 20/20 Experience’ was proof positive
that the bulk of his talent lives and dwells in the studio. He develops such progressive sounds and his
focus is undeniable. As an actor, I have
trouble seeing through ‘the Justin Timberlake show’. He has spent so long creating this identity
that it is hard for him to shed that in order to portray a character, unless
that character is perfectly suited to that identity. This is an opinion I didn’t expect back in
2007 when I first saw Timberlake in front of the camera. His performance as Frankie Ballenbacher in ‘Alpha
Dog’ was rather impeccable, filled to the brim with charisma but also with
emotional connection to the material, and he works genius in that pivotal scene. After watching him there I really expected
him to become a bona fide movie star, and he sort of has, but not in the sense
that I wanted him to. He has basically
proven himself to be the Matthew McConaughey of his generation. You can’t build a career in the movies on
mere charisma. Well, you can, but not a
truly respectable one.

About Me

What is there to say? I love movies, books, music...whatever and I love talking about it. I love predicting Oscars and publishing my own personal awards (Fistis!) and I love hearing what you have to say about what I have to post. It's come a long way from it's very humble (and slightly embarrassing) beginnings and has turned into a blog that I'm very proud to be the founder of.